How do you spell F-I-E-L-D T-R-I-P?

Claire Yezbak FaddenSouthFlorida.com

For many students, a field trip is little more than a day off from school. It's a welcome chance to avoid the formal classroom setting, listening to the teacher explain one subject after another. But with a bit of planning and a touch of "out-of-the-classroom" thinking, FIELD TRIP can spell out the perfect blend of academic challenge and adventurous fun. A trip can even ignite an attitude for learning.

Even though the classroom site has changed, a field trip is much more than a bus ride to a tourist attraction.

"Taking students into nature's classroom opens up a multitude of learning opportunities," says Laurie Humphrey, a sixth grade teacher who has logged many field trips during her 17-year career. "Children can't see, touch and do a lot of things within the confines of a classroom," says Humphrey, a national board certified teacher from California. As a strong advocate of hands-on learning, she tries to take her students on at least four field trips a year.

Before you arrange your children's next field trip or find yourself signed up as a chaperone, consider how you can take advantage of these nine points.

Factor in Fun: As they say in the entertainment industry, it's all about the hype. Weeks before the class heads out on a field trip start planting the seeds of excitement. Talk about the destination in ways the students don't expect. Get information from the destination that could be used in game of trivia or bingo to get the students interested before they even set foot on a bus.

It's an Investigation: Clues to learning are everywhere. Encourage students to think like a detective and see the field trip as an investigation into learning. Video recorders and digital cameras are an easy way to chronicle sites, sounds and student observations. These tools are on-the-spot aids to memory making and learning.

Exposure to Real Life: It's important for students to understand that field trips are opportunities for learning beyond their daily classroom curriculum. "During a field trip children are exposed to real life objects and things. This is an effective way to cause learning to be more meaningful," says Humphrey. A field trip to a marine science nature center such as Loggerhead in Jupiter, Gumbo Limbo in Boca Raton, Anne Kolb at West Lake Park in Dania Beach or Marjory Stoneman Douglas Biscayne Nature Center at Crandon Park on Key Biscayne, for example, allows students to get up close and personal to ocean life. That experience can't be emulated in a classroom.

Let's Do Lunch: For many students, the highlight of the field trip is the "picnic lunch" with their friends. You can extend lunch into a learning experience as well. Give some thought about how lunchtime fits into the field trip experience. If you're going to an animal park, talk about what kinds of things the zookeepers feed to the animals. If your trip takes you to an historic venue, ask what kids during that timeframe might have had for lunch.

Donate Your Time: "On a field trip, educators aren't tied to chalkboards, textbooks or formal lecture plans as a means of exciting their students into learning," Humphrey says. "And when parents volunteer to join us, it's all the more exciting for elementary age-students." When parents take the time to tag-along, they show their children in a concrete way that they value their education.

Take a Train: Explore various forms of transportation as a way to enrich your learning experience. In addition to the bus, can you take private cars, a ferry or the TriRail train?

Research & Review: The day of your field trip finally arrives. On your way to your destination, ask the children what they expect to see. As the day unfolds, encourage other chaperones to ask the students if the field trip is meeting their expectations. The next day, review the students' experiences. What did they like? What surprised them or was unexpected? What would they change for next time?

Increase Interest: Spice up your field trip with a theme. Try a scavenger hunt, a treasure map or maybe a passport that gets stamped as the student uncovers new facts. This method of layering the learning may be a more attractive and exhilarating method of learning than filling out a worksheet.

Parents Provide a Plus: Not every parent can be available to chaperone, but every parent can still help make the outing a success. Once you know where your child is going and what the topic is, determine how you can contribute to what your child learns there. Perhaps you work in a related field, or you have been to the location yourself. Talk to your child about your experiences. Even if you don't have any direct connection to the field trip, discuss what your child might see and learn that day. Then follow up after the field trip to see how the anticipation matched up with reality. Freelance writer Claire Yezbak Fadden has chaperoned field trips to the bakery, museums, nature centers and the aquarium. She confesses that the field trip to the bakery was her favorite.

MORE HELPFUL INFORMATION:

Field Trip Grants As part of Target's commitment to education, the discount store chain offers a field trip grants program. Each year as many as 1,600 educators are awarded grants of up to $1,000 each to fund a student field trip. The application process begins in August for the 2008-2009 program. Visit www.targetfieldtripgrants.target.com for details.